A premium candle is composed, not just scented. Learn the three-tier fragrance pyramid that master perfumers borrow from haute parfumerie.
A great candle is not scented - it is composed. Borrowed from haute parfumerie, the three-tier pyramid of top, heart, and base notes turns a candle into a small piece of olfactory architecture that unfolds across an hour-long burn.
Top notes: the first impression
Citrus, light herbs, sea air. These are the small, volatile molecules that evaporate first - within fifteen minutes. They are what your customer smells when they lift the lid in the shop. Make them generous, but never the whole story.
Heart notes: the body of the candle
Florals, spices, soft woods. The heart carries the scent through the long middle of the burn and is what guests remember when they have left the room. This is where you spend the majority of your fragrance budget.
Base notes: the signature
Vanilla, sandalwood, oud, musk, leather. Large, heavy molecules that anchor the lighter notes and linger in the wax even after the flame is out. A candle without a strong base will smell hollow within ten minutes.
A 30 / 50 / 20 starting point
For an eight percent fragrance load, we teach our students to begin with 30 percent top, 50 percent heart, 20 percent base, and then adjust to the wax. Soy mutes top notes - push that ratio to 35. Coconut blends amplify them - pull it back to 25.
Compose, do not just pour.
